Kalshi launches stock index perpetual futures to broaden product suite
Prediction market startup Kalshi launched a stock index perpetual future on Tuesday, October 6. The product, called the US 500 perpetual future, lets traders take leveraged long or short positions on a US 500 stock index with funding rates applied. CEO Tarek announced the move in a company statement. The launch expands Kalshi's offerings beyond binary event contracts into derivatives-style instruments on its CFTC-regulated exchange.
Kalshi's perpetual future enters a market where Robinhood already dominates retail prediction-market revenue yet holds no direct CFTC exchange license. Robinhood routes all prediction-market volume through external partners including Kalshi, creating a branding gap that Kalshi can now exploit with its own leveraged product.
The CFTC-regulated status lets Kalshi pitch stability directly to traders who have weathered partner-driven disruptions. Meanwhile, Kalshi's parallel margin filing for event contracts now competes with this perpetual push for regulatory bandwidth. Whichever product wins CFTC favor first will set the template rivals must match.